What did Andrea Petkovic say about Carlos Alcaraz? All you need to know about latest criticism following the Spaniard ahead of Australian Open 2025

Andrea Petkovic’s latest comments over Carlos Alcaraz rubbed a few fans the wrong way. The former top-10 star had questioned the lack of a “plan B” in the Spaniard’s game during a recent podcast appearance, a comment that did not go down well with everyone.

The discussion between Petkovic and Rennae Stubbs on the latter’s namesake podcast revolved around the current crop of men’s players. Dissecting their games, the German spoke about her one “quibble” with Alcaraz.

Petkovic said Alcaraz’s lows can be really “f*cking horrendous”, something that she attributed to the lack of a “plan B” in his game when things aren’t going his way. She claimed that the likes of Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, and Taylor Fritz do not have that problem.

"The one quibble I have with Carlos is what the others don't have, Zverev doesn't have, even Taylor doesn't have, Jannik definitely doesn't have, Novak definitely doesn't have. When Carlos is bad, he is f*cking horrendous. He doesn't have a plan B." (at 41:10)

Further along in the podcast, Petkovic and Stubbs spoke about Alcaraz’s performances on quicker hardcourts, noting that he needed to adjust his serve slightly to make sure that he is hitting it flatter and faster in order to win a few more easy points in that department.

The Spaniard had suffered a loss at the hands of Gael Monfils at the Cincinnati Open, an example they cited of him losing control over a match for the want of a plan B.

Notably, Alcaraz had led Monfils during their Round-of-32 encounter, having taken the opening set. However, things took a turn for the worse when he lost the second in a tiebreaker. He would go on to lose the encounter 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4.

Alcaraz had himself dubbed the loss against Monfils as one of his worst matches. Adding that there were no positives to take away from the encounter, he said his mindset remained to be ready to play on any type of court and win on any surface.

Not too long after the Cincinnati Open loss, Alcaraz lost a series of other hardcourt matches to opponents ranked much lower than him. This included losses against Botic Van de Zandschulp, Tomas Machac, and Ugo Humbert.

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Andrea Petkovic’s criticism draws flak from Carlos Alcaraz fans

Carlos Alcaraz in action during the Charlotte Invitational 2024. (Source: Getty)

Andrea Petkovic’s take on Carlos Alcaraz drew flak from the Spaniard’s fans. Most were critical of the German’s assessment and shared their disagreement on social media.

Some even took to social media to attack the German, varyingly dubbing her take “horrendous” and even asking her to worry about her own “substandard legacy”. Others were more respectful in voicing their differences, even acknowledging Petkovic’s professional achievements in the conversations.

Petkovic, a former top-10 player, hung up her racket at the 2022 US Open. She had amassed seven career titles, including the season-ending WTA Elite trophy in 2014. She peaked at World No. 9 in the WTA rankings back in 2011.

The German's best Grand Slam performance had come at the 2013 French Open, where she reached the semifinals. Over the course of her decade-and-a-half-long career, she also amassed 15 wins over top-10 players.

Carlos Alcaraz, in his young career, has lifted four Grand Slam titles and peaked at World No. 1 in the rankings. He is currently ranked at No. 3 behind Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev.